Sausage rigatoni pasta bake

Just a pack of sausages, a couple of cans of chopped tomatoes, some rigatoni pasta and a few other store cupboard ingredients combined together will make this delicious meal for everyone to enjoy. Serve this with a crisp green salad, garlic bread or a crusty rustic loaf. This is a great for an Al Fresco meal in the Summer or as a filling and comforting meal for a Winter evening.

Ingredients

2 – 3 tbsp vegetable oil

8 pork or beef sausages

1 onion, finely chopped

1 red pepper, deseeded and thinly sliced

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 small hot red chilli, deseeded and chopped ( optional)

2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes

50ml red wine

1 tsp granulated sugar

2 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp tomato purée

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

250g Rigatoni pasta

50g Mozzarella cheese, grated

50g mature Cheddar cheese, grated

Try adding capers, black olives, sun dried tomatoes, or a few chopped anchovies to this dish. This dish is delicious served hot or cold – it’s great to take for a packed lunch.

Method

Preheat oven to 200⁰C/400⁰F/Fan 180⁰C/Gas Mark 6. Heat the oil in a large frying or sauté pan. Add the sausages and fry over a moderate heat for 4 – 5 minutes until lightly browned. Lift out and drain and set aside to cool for a few minutes.

Add the onion, pepper, garlic and chilli and fry for 5 minutes until softened but not browned.

Add the chopped tomatoes and their juice, red wine, sugar, oregano and tomato purée and stir together well. Season with salt and black pepper. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 – 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly.

Cut the sausages into thick slices and place in an ovenproof dish measuring 38cm x 23cm.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan with plenty of salted boiling water for 10 – 15 minutes until tender but still “Al Dente”.

Drain the pasta and then add it to the tomato sauce. Stir the sauce into the pasta until well combined then add it all to the sausages in the dish , mixing everything together evenly.

Mix the cheeses together and sprinkle over the pasta. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes until the cheese is golden brown. Serve with a green salad and crusty bread.

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